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NFL Draft 2014: What they're saying about Michael Sam, other Day 3 highlights

Michael Sam

FILE - In this Nov. 20, 2013, file photo, Missouri defensive lineman Michael Sam takes up his position during the first half of an NCAA college football game against Texas A&M in Columbia, Mo. Sam was selected in the seventh round, 249th overall, by the St. Louis Rams in the NFL draft Saturday, May 10, 2014. The Southeastern Conference defensive player of the year last season for Missouri came out as gay in media interviews this year. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson, File)
(Jeff Roberson)

Picks No. 101 through Mr. Irrelevant at No. 256 are in the books and the 2014 NFL Draft is officially over. Day 3 of the draft turned out to be a historic one for a variety of reasons, most notably due to a highly anticipated pick that finally arrived at the 11th hour.

Here's some national reaction to Saturday's more notable selections and happenings:

Michael Sam, Rams make history

With the 249th pick of the draft, the St. Louis Rams selected linebacker Michael Sam from Missouri, making Sam the first openly gay player to be drafted in league history. Sam announced that he is gay shortly before the NFL combine in February and his draft stock has been a hot topic ever since.

The 2013 SEC Defensive Player of the Year had to wait through nearly seven rounds of picks before finally getting the call, a moment captured by cameras that made it clear just how emotionally taxing Sam's journey has been:

"We were very fortunate to have the supplemental choice, and we felt that you use those to pick players you want to give an opportunity to, that you think you want to draft," Fisher said. "He's a good football player, and we got a good football player right after him, so I'm excited about our draft, excited about our production, excited about the possibility of adding him to our defensive front."

Fisher's sentiment will surely resonate with Sam, who insisted he wanted to be known as a football player rather than a pioneer within the sport. Either way, Sam will make his first impacts in the league and on the field in his home state and just two hours away from his college home in Columbia, Mo.

"I sent him a text and hoped he would have gone to my team, the Indianapolis Colts," Collins said. "But I am very happy for Michael that he got drafted and that his dream is coming true and he will have an opportunity to make the team and I wish him luck."

Throughout the draft process, Sam had a note in his draft profile that no other football player ever has. When Sam went undrafted through the first six rounds, it became increasingly unclear how much that factor really mattered. Now a Ram with a chance to be the first openly gay player to player in the NFL, Sam appears ready to overachieve for his late seventh-round draft slot:

Thank you to the St. Louis Rams and the whole city of St. Louis. I'm using every [ounce] of this to achieve greatness!! pic.twitter.com/QESdOJVzsw

Considered smaller than the prototypical NFL defensive end, Sam didn't produce the kind of speed and quickness measurables at the NFL combine that land players at his position in the draft's early rounds. At 6-2 and 260 pounds, Sam isn't seen as an every-down defensive end in a 4-3 defense and lacks the coveted athleticism to play outside linebacker in a 3-4 defense. He figures to be more of a situational pass-rusher.

Longhorns don't make the cut

Late into Saturday's picks, it looked as if neither the SEC nor Big 12's 2013 Defensive Player of the Year would be drafted. The Rams prevented that from happening by drafting Sam, but Texas defensive end Jackson Jeffcoat went unclaimed and became the face of an equally remarkable happening.

No players from the University of Texas were drafted this year. Zero. From a school that produced 13 picks in the first round alone over the last 10 years, not a single player was drafted in 2014.

Here's a Tweet that puts things in perspective and rubs salt in the wounds of Longhorn fans:

The historically poor draft showing underscored the Longhorns' slide in recent years under coach Mack Brown. After advancing to the 2009 national championship game, Texas signed the nation's No. 2 recruiting class, which included Jeffcoat and 18 other players who were given either four or five stars. But that class never lived up to its billing, and the Longhorns went just 30-21 over the last four years.

Texas fans should take solace in seeing what Strong's most recent program did in this year's draft. Louisville sent four players through the NFL Draft, three of which came in the first round. That is a tremendous credit to Strong and the staff he put together in Louisville, as this was the result of his first recruiting class going through a full four-year cycle. That resulted in the Cardinals sending a potential franchise quarterback in Teddy Bridgewater with a late first round draft pick in addition to two defensive contributors (Calvin Pryor to the Jets and Marcus Smith to the Eagles).

More NFL Draft coverage:

• Despite a newfound need at wide receiver, the Cleveland Browns added another big cornerback to their roster instead with fourth-round pick Pierre Desir from

• After a handful of free agent acquisitions and impact draft picks, there's no doubting the New Orleans Saints got better in the offseason. But did they improve enough to take charge of the NFC? NOLA.com's Jeff Duncan doesn't think so.

"I was always a Giants fan, I never had a specifically favorite team, but I always liked the Giants," Jackson said on a conference call this afternoon. "I hated the Jets, so, I guess it worked out in my favor."